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Promoting relaxation in horses is not easy, because horses are naturally afraid of the unknown: for example, an unfamiliar living being, an unusual noise, a new smell, or an object they have never seen before. This is due to the fact that, throughout an evolution lasting millions of years, the horse has always been prey to carnivores. Even today, despite having been domesticated for about 5,500 years, it still clearly retains the ancestral memory of predation. This causes it to live in a constant state of alert.
Improving fear control:
To improve fear control, it is best to begin with the foal, using great gentleness and gradual exposure so that it becomes familiar with the situations and objects it will have to face as an adult. Training must take place without haste, as must the correction of its most obvious fears. If a horse were to injure itself while jumping an obstacle, the memory of the pain associated with jumping could lead it to systematically refuse obstinately. In that case, the obstacle should be lowered and the horse should be encouraged to face it gently over and over again until the fear is overcome.
Only after the horse has regained confidence will it be able to gradually and successfully face increasingly demanding obstacles. This is a fear desensitization process which, although it requires skill, time, and patience, can deliver excellent results.
Counteracting anxiety:
Anxiety, unlike fear, is a mood disorder in which stress plays the leading role and causes a state of great agitation that appears unjustified. For example, some horses are disturbed by the sound of rain and struggle to remain calm and focused on their work during competitions held in bad weather.
Counteracting stress reactions through nutrition
Nutrition is strongly involved in the development of anxiety and stress, so cereals should be limited in the ration and, where possible, replaced with fiber sources or fats, in order to provide the same energy intake with a lower impact on the gastrointestinal tract. The harmful effects of feeds containing starches are reflected in reactivity, heart rate, and behavior, indicating that diet can influence the horse’s neurophysiology.
Fat Fiber, a pelleted complementary feed with a good fiber content and a high concentration of fats, makes it possible to significantly reduce the starch content of the ration, promoting better behavioral management of the horse.
Protecting the stomach: the target organ of stress
To protect the stomach lining, it is important to use complementary feeds that support normal gastric physiology, such as Trophogast Pellet, whose effectiveness in healing moderate ulcers has been successfully tested by the University of Milan.
Which horses need to be focused and relaxed?
The horses that need to concentrate the most during competition are Quarter Horses used in reining and show jumping horses, which must maintain maximum concentration during the minute and a half of competition. For this reason, trainers and instructors often request complementary feeds with a very rapid relaxing effect to be used shortly before competition.
The use of natural products to promote relaxation in horses
The use of plants has always produced positive results in humans and in other domestic species. In horses, there are articles such as those by Elghandour et al., 2018, which discuss the benefits of using herbal products or blends of herbs in horses and explain why complementary feeds of this kind have gained ground in the horse feed market.
Equiplanet solutions to promote relaxation in horses:
Tranquillity
Tranquillity: is a powdered complementary feed containing tryptophan, magnesium, vitamin B1, and zinc. Regular administration for at least 10 days is recommended so that it can provide benefits for the horse’s wellbeing.
Tryptophan is the amino acid precursor of serotonin, a neurotransmitter involved in sedation and in the inhibition of aggression, fear, and stress in various animal species and in humans. Nutrition influences the passage of tryptophan across the blood-brain barrier: a diet high in fats and low in protein leads to high plasma concentrations of tryptophan, which consequently results in greater serotonin production and therefore a greater relaxing effect.
Magnesium is involved in the synthesis of certain proteins, muscle contraction, and the transmission of nerve impulses. In all cases of severe stress, the use of magnesium is recommended precisely because of its stabilizing role at the central level. It should be remembered that the magnesium requirement is 7.5 g of magnesium per day for a 500 kg horse at maintenance, doubling in the case of intense sporting activity.
Vitamin B1 (thiamine), known as the “mood vitamin,” is vital for the transmission of nerve impulses, and the literature reports that a deficiency may result in nervousness, distraction, and reluctance to work. For these reasons, it is correctly supplemented in animals showing mood disorders. In addition, it is always advisable to supplement sport animals with B vitamins.
Zinc is a fundamental element in the functional regulation of the central nervous system. It is believed that imbalances involving its homeostasis in the central nervous system may cause calcium imbalance and alteration of synaptic signaling.
Calm Forte T+
Calm Forte T+ is a liquid complementary feed containing tryptophan, Tilia tormentosa, Passiflora edulis, Eschscholzia californica, Tilia cordata, and vitamin B1. Its use is recommended 1–2 hours before competition or transport, in cases where the horse becomes particularly agitated during travel.
Tryptophan, as we have already said, improves the horse’s mental and emotional balance, resulting in calmer subjects that are less fearful, less aggressive, or less susceptible to stress reactions. Young horses and those used in disciplines such as trotting and galloping are the most excitable and require proper management, desensitization work, and substances capable of containing hyperexcitability.
Vitamin B1 (thiamine), known as the “mood vitamin,” is vital for the transmission of nerve impulses.
Passiflora edulis has a long tradition of use as an anxiolytic in humans. Its relaxing properties are due to the many flavonoids it contains, which act on the central nervous system and perform a relaxing function.
Eschscholzia californica is also a perennial herbaceous plant that promotes relaxation in horses. Its flower and roots contain an orange latex in which alkaloids, phytosterols, carotenoids, and flavonoids are present, giving this plant its relaxing properties, including on striated muscle.
Tilia cordata is a long-lived, large tree widespread throughout Europe. Linden is widely used in herbal medicine for its relaxing properties. The parts most commonly used in phytotherapy are the flowers and leaves because of their rich concentration of flavonoids, tannins, essential oils, and coumarins, which play a key role in controlling stress and anxiety.
The nutritional management of the nervous, agitated horse that shows anxiety or fear is complex and begins with the basic ration. It is necessary to recognize the cause that induces an alteration in the horse’s emotional balance. Therefore, if good results are to be achieved, it is essential to consult experts in the field who can recommend a well-balanced diet with the inclusion of complementary feeds that promote relaxation in horses.
For further information, write to info@equiplanet
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Bibliography
- Role of diet and feeding in normal and stereotypic behaviors in horses. Hothersall B, Nicol C., 2009
- Plant bioactives and extracts as feed additives in horse nutrition. Mona M.M.Y. Elghandour, 2018
- Preliminary Evaluation on the Effectiveness of Varying Doses of Supplemental Tryptophan as a Calmative in Horses. BP. Davisa, 2016
- Calmatives for the excitable horse: A review of L-tryptophan. A. Grimmett, 2004
- Equine Behavioral Medicine, BV Beaver, 2019
- Veterinary phytotherapy: An overview. MJ. Smith-Schalkwijk, 1999
- Nutrition, behaviour and the role of supplements for calming horses: The veterinarian’s dilemma. P Harris, 2005
- Passiflora: a review update. K Dhawan, 2004
- Behavioural Effects of the American Traditional Plant Eschscholzia californica: Sedative and Anxiolytic Properties. A Rolland, 1990
- Use of an Animal Model to Evaluate Anxiolytic Effects of Dietary Supplementation with Tilia tomentosa Moench Bud Extracts. F Turrini, 2020
- B Vitamins and the Brain: Mechanisms, Dose and Efficacy—A Review. DO Kennedy, 2016
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